25.5.12

Petite Ourse

Wow, it's been a really long time since I've done a Canadiana Tuesday post... not since October 2011! Well, today isn't Tuesday but I do have a great little shop I'd love to share with you. 

As many of you know, babies are droolly little creatures. Edwin's drool production has really gone up since he discovered his hands and now always has them in his mouth. I was lamenting the fact that all his clothes get covered in drool last week when my friend Anile told me about a cute solution, bandana bibs! I love the idea of having something that does not scream bib but acts as a great little fashion accessory and useful face wiper. Etsy to the rescue, check out the bandana bibs from Petite Ourse, they're so cute and based right here in Quebec. Score!



I think my little droolmeister would look pretty darn cute in one of these. Visit Petite Ourse to see more of their bibdana selection.

Have a wonderful weekend!
xo Bess

22.5.12

Storytime


Edwin loves when we read to him, and we love it too! He gets so excited by all the pictures and "reads" along with us in his most excited (and loud) voice. It's hilarious! Olivia is one of our favourites (her cat's name is Edwin!) as well as Hockey Numbers (hey, we're Canadian), The Giving Tree, How Do I Love You and a handful of others.

Do you have any favourite books for babies? I have a list of some of my faves from when I was a kid that I'd like to get for Eddie. I'd love to hear your recommendations though!

Have a great day :)
xx Bess

15.5.12

Me & Eddie




For Mother's Day I asked Papa Chuck if he would take some photos of me and Edwin. There are so few of us together for the simple reason that it's usually me behind the camera. We had lots of fun, but I must admit that Edwin and I don't make for the best models—we're very hard to direct ;)

Have a wonderful day!
xo Bess

13.5.12

Happy Mother's Day!



I don't think there's anything in the world that can prepare you for becoming a mother, even your own mother's cautionary advice about how hard the first few months with a baby can be (my sister and I were both colicky babies) pales in comparison to the real thing. I used to think having a high-maintenance dog would do the trick, um no.

The past four months have undoubtedly been the most challenging, demanding, amazing and rewarding four months of my life. I've never loved anyone like I love Edwin, it almost hurts my heart.  So to all the mothers, you have my sincere admiration, and especially to my mom... Happy Mother's Day!

PS. The P&G ad definitely made me cry ;)

xox Bess

11.5.12

Napping with Edwin


If you follow me on Instagram—then you're probably inundated with Edwin photos, and you also may know that I captioned this photo "It only took 45 minutes. #sarcasm". I am writing this post from my bed which has an excellent view of the napping baby and is only three large steps away from his little back which I can pat and his little ear into which I can shush should he begin to stir. This setup is my way of trying to extend his naps which have been getting shorter and shorter as of late. And yes, I know it's against all the baby rules to put a baby to sleep on their tummy, but it's only for his naps and like I said, I'm watching him like a hawk!

Edwin's progressively shorter naps recently fueled an Amazon parenting book shopping spree. I bought three books (yes, that's the definition of a shopping spree to me), Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Dr. Marc Weissbluth, Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems by Tracy Hogg, and The Baby Book by Dr. William Sears. I waited anxiously for them to arrive, convinced they would solve all my parenting woes. These were to be my first parenting books, I had avoided them for the first 3.5 months of Edwin's life, but was now searching for answers on sleeping, eating and general parenting questions and welcomed the advice of seasoned professionals with open arms. Once they arrived I immediately skipped to the relevant sections in each of the books, ready to whip my parenting style into shape. The only problem was that I began noticing that each of the books contradicted the others, over and over again! "Never wake a sleeping baby" vs. "Wake a sleeping baby to keep them on schedule", "Breast-feeding a baby to sleep is perfectly fine" vs. "Don't breast-feed to sleep unless you want to be breast-feeding your baby to sleep until they're two", "Babies should be placed in their cribs drowsy but not asleep so they learn to fall asleep on they're own" vs. "Wait ten minutes before placing the sleeping baby in the crib to ensure they've entered a deep sleep", "Sometimes letting your baby cry it out is the only way they'll learn to go to sleep" vs. "Never leave your baby alone to cry, respond to their needs immediately". Shall I continue?!

Obviously all of this new and contradictory information sent me into a bit of a tailspin. I was suddenly convinced that everything I was doing for Edwin was wrong; his routine, the way I was feeding him, his relationship with sleep and whether he was getting enough of it. Did you know babies who are chronically overtired have difficulty learning and may become overweight?! I know I sound a little neurotic, but when it's just you, your baby, the baby books and google at home during the day sometimes it's hard to keep calm, cool and collected about all this stuff. 

I have been able to incorporate some of the information from the books into our daily life so far with some success. But, in general I remain pretty committed to the parenting style Charles and I adopted from day one: to always be there for Edwin and to give him everything he needs. It can be difficult not to over-analyze the daily minutia and to find problems where there really aren't any, so thank goodness for real-life mom friends and their real-life advice! I've been very fortunate to have some great mom friends who help to keep me sane and give me sideways glances when I talk about elaborate baby schedules ;) 

Edwin's nap update: It's been 1.5 hours and he's still sleeping!!

Have a wonderful day :)
xo Bess